Between Heaven And Hell
by Miss Myshkina
Summary: "She initially accounted that his inebriation would be her ultimate advantage, but this man was more troublesome than she could even imagine." [Claudia Auditore/Cesare Borgia] One-shot, Lemon (kinda, I'm stupid), not utter Crack as it might seem. Revenge time, Ezio! You've had it coming, lel.


**A/N: Yooo, how'sa goin', peeps? It's me and my crazy fanfics again, yaaaaaay! No, seriously, this is the craziest one yet. I know you'll hate it (especially if you're an Ezio fan, or a Claudia fan or an AC fan in general even, IdunnoImeanwhateverfloatsyerboat), but hey, YOLO, amirite? No, of course I'm not. You'll find the translations and everything else you need to know right below the piece. If anything, I can promise you that this is not as cracky as it might seem. Also, the story takes place during Claudia and Maria's first arrival in Rome and, if you remember (or don't know, whichever the case) Claudia offered herself to run the Rosa In Fiore, the most popular brothel in the city, much to Ezio's dismay.**

**Either way, like it or not, I hope you enjoy~**

* * *

Proud and gracious, he stood upon the city of Rome, as the afternoon breeze softly brushed his face and tousled his hair. From the very top of his fortress, as he gazed upon the vast realms of the settlement upon seven hills, he smiled; he saw this as an innuendo, as a designation of power and glory, gold provided out of quagmire.

He truly felt like a king; delicate and profound, consummate and merciful, vengeful, dreaded, but in regard. Vain, but still hardly an inch off the ground.

A hint of disdain rose on the tip of his lip; the volatile piles of citizens that wandered the streets aimlessly taunted him to believe that they were indeed nothing but a herd of two-legged sheep, lost and futile without him and the Order. Look at them, so merry, so blissfully ignorant, so innocent; a shepherd is mandatory, to show them the way, lead them through the blizzard of modern virtues and other south winds, and condescend them for providence of the one above...

But no, that was a lie; not all of them were in the dark. There were those with self-made embers, who labelled for themselves, for the debacle of all known order and serenity that had been built for centuries in the human kind.

They are alike to the living dead, who had given up ordinary life and dedicated their whole existence to savor this cause of theirs, this vacant, tasteless abundance, this imperfect grudge of the world. They call themselves Assassins, and they will stop at nothing to meet their ends, equally immoral as their opponents. Their lines consist of fugitives, of whores, of broken souls with no other purpose to dedicate themselves to.

They are the devils in disguise. And Cesare would treat them as no less, as he had took all measures to see to it that the very one who attempted to send his father to God paid, and paid so in blood.

But that was only the beginning; with the artifact in his hands, he shall finally be able to fulfill the matter, to conquer it all, to become His representative on earth-

"Buona sera, Cesare," Micheletto appeared on the General's side. Diligently, the latter lowered his arms, which he had raised in the captivating train of thoughts that had begotten him.

Cesare nodded at his servant, turning his stare back on the horizon. As an overture to his upcoming propose, Micheletto placed his hand on his master's shoulder.

"I plan to loosen up from all the duties tonight," he smirked, "So I would be most honored if you would enjoin me, if you've no other affairs for the evening, that is."

As if he was just a scoundrel swept off the street, Cesare, with little prestige, threw on a mocking grin, "Now, I would be a bad companion if I digressed, no?"

With that, both men chuckled, retreating back into the halls of Sant'Angelo.

"I shall take you to the Rosa In Fiore," Micheletto told as they descended down the stairway, "A recently renovated guild with plenty to offer. You won't regret it."

"Certainly," Cesare agreed, making way to his own quarters, "I do need to ease my mind off these horrible qualms anyway."

* * *

Claudia smiled as she directed another Courtesan to the wealthy merchant, now merely more than a drunkard who could barely stand on his own feet. An easy target for an experienced woman, who knows well where her desires lie.

The female Auditore rejoiced; running this business was easier than she could ever imagine. Attendance to the guild grew rapidly day by day, and many a weak-kneed corrupt Official or important figure was brought to submission and admitted their ties with the Templars. The very ones who took away her almost whole family. And for whom's pyre she labored day and night to be ignited, determined to wipe them out once and for all.

For she took no joy in this, no; neither her nor her mother could say that they ever aspired to be where they are now, but what's done is done and the policy has already been set. The cause must be satisfied.

"Cara figlia," Maria walked up to Claudia, with a lenient smile, "Is everything quite alright for you this fine Roman evening? You seem concerned."

Claudia fretted, dropping out of her thoughts.

"No, madre," she assured, "It is nothing, I am as good as ever, trust me. My hopes are you can say the same."

She intertwined Maria's hands with her own, as her mother's gracious orbs blessed her beloved child. But before they could exchange another word, a couple of gentlemen stormed into the brothel out of the blue, alerting everyone with their sudden presence.

Claudia knitted her brows; both of them were quite young. The one on the left had black hair and just as nightly-severe eyes, but she could not recognize him. But the other man...

She was confused. She and Maria exchanged looks before gauging him from head to toe; a handsome young man, that was for sure, well-sculpted and of lofty stance. And yet...He radiated with some perilous, rigid aura, that made both mother and daughter uneasy.

"Dio mi aiuti," Claudia whispered to Maria, "Who could that be?"

Maria's orbs narrowed as she sought an answer to the inquiry.

"Salve, buoni Messeri," one of the Courtesans greeted the said men, "Benvenuti nel nostro grandioso bordello."

A sinister smirk beheld the features of the man that impacted the Auditore women as he slowly took his coat off. In one elegant move, he handed it to another Courtesan that had approached them, and quickly crackled his fingers, asking for two glasses of wine.

Claudia stood undecided, and together with her mother, she hid, cloaked in the shadow of the large stairway that led to the bedrooms on the upper floor. As she caught one of the Courtesans that had served the gentlemen their drinks passing by, she immediately pulled her into the shadow.

"Who are those two?" she questioned nervously, to which the Courtesan crossed her arms.

"You do not know? Strange," she began, but as Claudia's angered expression booked no argument, she answered, "The prettier one is Cesare Borgia, and the other is his loyalist, Micheletto Corella."

It was little to say that the two women were shocked by this revelation; so much, even, that Maria was about to scream, and Claudia shook uncontrollably.

She then observed the man in question more plainly; the only two things she knew about him were his renowned name (or rather, infamous, for he was the most notorious out of all the Roman gentlemen), and that he was responsible for Mario her uncle's death. And her knowledge on the man himself ended there. However, the knowledge on his family was far greater; he was the son of the Pope, and it would be only normal to assume that he would inherit at least a part of the latter's ruthlessness, if not all of it, for Rodrigo Borgia was a known conspirator, and the Auditore would know that best of all.

Still, Claudia stood befuddled; what was she to do now? Call for reinforcements? Show the two men out? _Kill them_?

_No no, think, Claudia. To do them any harm would be to affect the whole hive behind them. Think, think, what would be the best solution? What would Ezio do?_

She flinched, louder, receiving Maria's attention.

"Tesoro..." she caressed Claudia's cheek, attempting to comfort her. The girl emptily stared Cesare's way; he was already on his third glass, and the girls seemed to entertain him marvelously by now, and the same could be applied for Micheletto, who was about to get dragged upstairs.

And Claudia had finally made her decision.

"Madre," she began, quietly, pulling her mother closer, "Ho un'idea, ma-"

"Be out with it," Maria encouraged, to which Claudia evened her breath, endeavoring to calm herself. And while she presented her thought, she avoided her mother's gaze, half out of embarrassment, half out of excitement.

"So, as far as I've gathered since we've arrived to Roma, Cesare...Is quite important for our cause," she declared, and Maria listened, earnest as ever, "And...Ah, I think him too delicate to be dealt with by one of our girls. Therefore, my idea would be..."

"Si?"

Claudia bit her lip. And after a few moments, Maria's face darkened; she comprehended what her daughter was implying. She squeezed Claudia's hand, deep in thought for a few minutes. Surely, she was having an inner quarrel with herself, and although Claudia tried to have one too, she failed, repeatedly, leaving everything in the hands of the older woman.

"It seems," Maria finally bestowed, "That it is our only chance. I trust your judgement, tesoro, and I relinquish it all to you."

Claudia gulped; her mother was every bit serious right now. She took one more dreaded glance toward the young Borgia, just to reassure herself of what was about to happen.

"Ottimo," she replied dryly, "I will give it my best."

With an approving pat from Maria, Claudia took her leave, so she could prepare for the deed. During her absence, Maria instructed the girls to treat Cesare with caution, and that none shall take him until Claudia is ready, whereas Micheletto was already out of sight.

* * *

"Do I take one dose or two?" Claudia wondered out loud as she twiddled the small bottles of poison around her fingers. To soothe herself, along with the already chosen two, she picked another one.

"Three," she concluded, "For luck."

She placed them under her provocative garments, right next to the knife. Checking whether her assets were well-hidden, she took a look into the mirror one last time, and figured that the time has come.

Slowly, Claudia descended to the main lobby, where Cesare laughed wholeheartedly with the three girls that had mantled around him. It was phasing to the Florentine; Lord knows how much he drank up to this point, yet he still managed to behave himself the same way as when he had entered the brothel.

She initially accounted that his inebriation would be her ultimate advantage, but this man was more troublesome than she could even imagine.

"Ragazze," she gracefully interrupted, "You're free to go now, grazie."

As soon as she'd ordered the Courtesans away, Cesare slightly frowned. His sharp, cerulean orbs meekly admired Claudia for a moment, before he would make a taunting smile.

"And you are...?"

She gave him a deep bow.

"The Madame of the Rosa In Fiore," Claudia purposefully excluded her name, for she knew what fate awaited if Cesare unveiled her true identity.

But for now, the General seemed humored enough.

"Well then, pray tell, Madame, what business do I have with you tonight?" Cesare chuckled, to which Claudia responded with a small turn about herself, as her dress flew a little bit upward, so the Borgia could grasp a small portion of what he was dealing with.

She approached him sensually, smiling as she offered him a hand. With a lustful appeal to his features, Cesare immediately accepted. They made their way upstairs, and just as Claudia was about to choose one of the bedrooms, the General had gotten impatient, so he'd picked her up and carried her all the way to the bed himself.

"Ah, Messere, you did not have to..." Claudia remained surprised by this considerate act, to which Cesare smirked shrewdly, replying, "It is quite alright; besides, you need to savor your energy for things of different nature, no?"

Helplessly, Claudia giggled at this; surely, if he wasn't who he was, and she wasn't herself, perhaps they could-

_No, snap out of it! Shame on you! He's the enemy, treat him as such._

But there was not much time for the female Auditore to think; foreplay had already commenced. Cesare pushed her down among the soft cushions, and as he lied himself next to her, he softly grasped her hand and brushed it with his lips.

Claudia felt herself shudder, and she would suppress it, but something else caught her attention; why wasn't he beginning? As far as the girls told her, they would usually get devoured by this time of the session. And what did he do? He simply lied there, observing her, taking in her appearance inch by inch.

It wasn't exactly one's idea of how foreplay works; frankly, it unnerved Claudia, but intrigued her nonetheless.

"Allora, Madonna," Cesare began, as he kissed her hand again, "What may you tell me about yourself?"

Of all the things to occur, Claudia was least expectant of the one that happened just now.

She gulped as she tried to think of a quick answer.

"I, uh..." Claudia's mind raced, but she wasn't sure what was worse: the fact that she had to lie or that this Borgia seemed more and more appealing to her by the second, and not just with his looks, but with his generosity and a certain form of kindness likewise.

For but a flicker, she allowed herself the audacity of thinking that this man was actually beautiful, that he was worth something in her eyes, that he was not a monster as they'd presented him, whereas she was supposed to gift him with the most passionate hatred.

"I..." she struggled, which earned her a snicker from Cesare.

"Well well, someone's too excited to even think, eh?" he mocked, as he flowed his fingers through Claudia's carefully brushed chocolate locks, "Alright then, that can be taken care of likewise."

And in a flash, she was beneath him, as he already had his tongue intertwined with hers. As her hands played around his back, a thought took shape in her mind.

_Il veleno._

Claudia pushed her right arm down, toward her hip, but before she could reach the needed substance, Cesare had broken the kiss and began tearing the torso of her dress open. Shortly, he was successful, and the Florentine lied naked under him, gasping for air.

"I cannot promise you gentleness from this point forth," Cesare licked his lips as he gazed down upon his prey, "But rather, a night to remember, Madonna."

With that said, he sat up and went to sip some more wine into his glass, thus ridding the jug of its beverage utterly. He had the breaches of his pants loosened even before the glass was voided.

Claudia gulped; the inevitable was at the doorstep, about to step across, and yet, she couldn't bring herself to reach the cursed blade and plunge it straight into his back, albeit the opportunity being perfect; she couldn't reach neither of the three carefully prepared doses of poison, that could ensnare the senses and murder in a few flickers of an eye.

She just reposed...And waited. Like a criminal awaits the execution of the punishment for their sin, their perjury.

And then, after another intensified breath, the perpetrator had shown himself, in all of his glory. Through the misty memory of the morning afore, all she could remember was the steamy breath on her neck and chest, the blatant noises of the moving of flesh against flesh, the rough, yet pleasing thrusts that cut right through her, and the thrilling, sticky sensation that would make her shiver all over and leave her starved, make her beg for more.

With her arms and legs helplessly spread in all their length, and her sanity half-broken, Claudia had lost herself to Cesare Borgia, who had discovered his own release among the fruitfulness of this woman whose true name he wasn't even aware of.

It was the perfect, most ironic twist of Fortune, one that does not linger in the lives of the ordinary.

* * *

"My dearest son!" Maria embraced Ezio as he smiled, returning the act of love, "I hope health serves you well, and your fortunes too!"

The Florentine eagle nodded proudly.

"Si, I've won many battles, but there are still a plethora to come," he confessed, "Thus, is everything in the guild quite alright? Where is Claudia?"

To this, however, Maria's smile withered. This alerted Ezio to the point of affliction.

"Madre?" he asked cautiously, "È successo qualcosa?"

The lady attempted to feign a chuckle.

"Ah, no, Ezio," she muttered, "It's just that...Claudia..."

"Si? Speak!" he urged her. But Maria would only frown.

"I shall let her tell you herself. She is upstairs-"

Ezio twitched uncontrollably as he observed his mother point towards the bedrooms, and only the blackest of thoughts could linger in his head while he ran, skipping three stairs at once. He briefly peeked through a few rooms before he'd finally find the one he needed.

Claudia was just about to put on the other sleeve of her dress whence he rampaged inside, akin to a wild bull. He gasped as he saw his sister half-naked, and was seemingly about to drift from reality when she tried to approach him in such a state.

"Ezio-"

"No..."

"Ezio, I can explain-"

"I cannot believe it!"

"_I said_, I can explain! Senti-"

"Explain _what_, Claudia?" he gnashed his teeth at her, eyes burning with zeal, "That you acted like a puttana, is _that_ it?"

Claudia was taken aback by this; she glared as Ezio grasped his head in despair.

"I knew this was a bad idea," he breathed, helpless and enraged at once, "I knew I shouldn't have led you into all of this."

Claudia's lips parted in a manner to speak, but Ezio was quicker.

"At least," he muttered, his face now becoming redder, "Who was the stronzo that...That..."

A few seconds would pass until Claudia could finally bring herself to answer, as if she had realized her own foolishness.

"Cesare Borgia."

Of all the people, of all the merchants, Officials, Mercenaries, Thieves, soldiers, whoremongers - of all the world, it had to be _him_.

Ezio needed quite some minutes to process what she had just bestowed to him. And once he could finally move again, wordless, he limped out of the brothel, his lips sealed tight and cheeks like two tomatoes. On his way, he shoved a knife up the throat of a guard that had found himself bold enough to mock him, just to ease the growing spite he felt towards his nemesis, now stronger than ever before.

"Ti ucciderò," he cursed as his face changed color from red to green, "Un bel giorno, _Borgia_..."

* * *

**Phrases in Italian:**

_Buona sera! - Good evening!_

_Cara figlia - dear daughter_

_Madre - mother_

_Dio mi aiuti! - God aid me!_

_Salve! - Hello!_

_Buoni Messeri - good gentlemen_

_Benvenuti nel nostro grandioso bordello. - Welcome to our grandiose brothel._

_Tesoro - darling/treasure_

_Ho un'idea. - I have an idea._

_Si - yes_

_Ottimo - excellent_

_Ragazze - girls_

_Grazie! - Thank you/Thanks!_

_Allora! - So/Now then!_

_Il veleno - the poison_

_È successo qualcosa? - Has something happened?_

_Senti! - Listen_

_Puttana - bitch/whore_

_Stronzo - asshole_

_Ti ucciderò un bel giorno. - I'll kill you one fine day._

**A/N: Heeeey, cookies for you if you came this far! I'll be surprised if anybody survives up until this point...Yer kewl, yo. Anyway, about this whole thing - it was not written with a goal to disregard canon nor do I ship the said pairing at all. It was just a random idea I conceived during a convo with one of my friends and the main reason why it exists is because of a vendetta directed towards Ezio.**

**Yes, you see, since he is presented to us as the Chuck Norris of the Italian (and worldly) Renaissance, I could not, in the means of fanfiction, think of a way to revenge on him through physical ways, since he is invincible (and in case you're wondering, I wanted to take revenge on him because I personally think he's an asshole and that people have unjustly died due to his bad decisions. Don't agree with me? COMMENCE BUTTHURT FANBOY H8 LEL. I don't care.).**

**And so, I thought to myself, "What could I possibly do that could completely crumble his pride and bring him down? *le idea pops* Why of course, reverse his own curse upon him! For he has nailed the sister of every enemy he's had in existence. Welp, TAIM FOR PAYBACK, AUDITORE!"**

**And so this thingy was borne. Now, to discuss further the characters of Cesare and Claudia - yes, they're utterly different, and it was an obnoxious idea to pair them to begin with. That is why I lay before you their resolves at the beginning and the first lapse, his as a Templar, and her as an Assassin - so you could grasp that difference of opinions, that schism and abyss between them. But somehow, since I was intent on doing it whatever the consequences, I at least wanted to rely on the fact that opposites attract and that certain chemistry could exist - but again, I claim that I do not ship this pairing nor did I intend to make this a romantic affair to begin with, because 1) Cesare was unable to love deeply, with the exception of his sister Lucrezia (not the incest thing dammit, cut the crap with that stupid rumor already!), and 2) he murdered Claudia's uncle and is the son of her family's killer.**

**Therefore, no flames pls, I know my canon, okay? Just bear with me. Pretty please. ;u;**

**Anyway, le Review button is yer amico, so if you're gonna praise - yay! And if you're gonna hate - good for you, I'm always open for discussions. Btw, sorry if I disappointed on the Lemon field, I'm still a bit inexperienced and I chickened out in the last moment. Hehe, my apologies, I'll try to do better another time. ^^"**

**Lel, long-ass A/N is long. Hope you enjoyed le fic! Peace!**


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